Dear Prayer Partner, The focus of our Bible a Month calendar in November is Uganda.  Uganda is an African country which boarders the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Kenya, Rwanda, South Sudan and Tanzania . Known also as "the Pearl of Africa", it is famous for its beauty and natural wonders. The people here are known for their warmth and friendliness.  The Bible Society of Uganda is known throughout the country. They have many projects including translation, distribution, work in schools and working with those with disabilities. In this Extra Insight we are focusing on their project which seeks to provide accessible Scriptures to people with visual disabilities.

On the 8th November at 7.30pm at High Kirk Presbyterian, Ballymena , we will be having our first supporter's evening. Simon Peter Mukhama , the General Secretary of the Bible Society of Uganda, will be speaking about his work. We would love to see you there!

Uganda Capital: Kampala Population: 40,853,749 (July 2018 est.) Official languages: English, Ganda and Luganda. Religion: Protestant 45.1%, Roman Catholic 39.3%, Muslim 13.7%, other 1.6%, none 0.2% (2014 est.) Statistics and map taken from The World Factbook and Operation World .

Ministry in Uganda The church in Uganda is strong and there are many opportunities for outreach. The Bible Society of Uganda is working with the local church and other mission organisations to reach as many people with God’s Word as they can. There is currently religious freedom in Uganda and there has been a rise in the number of churches being established. Christianity is taught about in schools and the Bible Society has many opportunities to connect with young people and children through a variety of youth projects.  There are currently 13 languages in Uganda that the Bible has not been translated into and another 18 that only have portions of the Bible translated. The Bible Society is working along with other organisations and local churches to provide as many people with a translation of the Bible as possible. With the rise in globalised media there has been an increase in western values throughout the country. However, there is also an increase in Christian TV and radio channels, which are growing in influence and impact. The Bible Society of Uganda has projects to reach everyone in society including those with hearing and visual impairments. Through our Bible a month calendar we are supporting the provision of Scripture to those who read through Braille.

Providing Braille Bibles in Uganda Recently the Bible Society of Uganda celebrated the completion of the translation of the Bible into Luganda Braille. So far it has been a great success in the local churches and communities, with those who are visually impaired rejoicing that they can read the Bible independently for themselves. Many churches have been able to have visually impaired people take readings in their churches for the first time. As of September 2019, the full Braille Bible has been distributed to two blind inclusive schools and one church. Several other churches have had the Bible Society of Uganda come to speak on the possibility of using the Braille Bible in their setting. It is an exciting time in the Ugandan church.  The Bible Society of Uganda hopes to visit more schools to give Braille Scriptures to the pupils who need them. They travel to the most remote parts of the country to deliver these Bibles. This project is important as it not only allows those who are visually impaired to read the Bible but shows them their worth in Christ. It shows individuals and their wider community that God is an accessible God who wants to get to know each and every person, regardless of their disability or ability.

Nakabuye's Story Nakabuye Florence is a blind Ugandan woman. She recalls going to church and listening to Sunday school lessons as a child, but when her classmates would go home and read the Bible on their own she could not. If she wanted to read the Bible, she needed someone else to read it to her. Nakabuye has been part of the translation of the Bible into braille, watch the video to find out more about her story.

"Then the Lord said to him, “Who has made man's mouth? Who makes him mute, or deaf, or seeing, or blind? Is it not I, the Lord? " Exodus 4:11

Pray for this Project Here are some of the ways you can pray for this project: Thank God for the translation of the Bible into Luganda Braille. Thank Him that He is an accessible God who wants to have a personal relationship with everyone, regardless of disability or ability. Pray that churches would quickly adopt this translation and would seek to use it as much as they can in their communities.  Pray that those with visual impairments would be touched by this translation and God would bring many to Himself through it. Pray for those who give care to their visually impaired friends or family. Pray that God would strengthen and encourage them and that they would also be reached by the message of the Braille Bible.

Give Every £5 donated to this project will enable the Bible Society of Uganda to give a student a portion of the Braille Bible. Make a donation online now. This project is our Bible-a-month project for November. Decide to become a Bible-a-month partner today! You will receive a free calendar with information about this and 11 other Bible Society projects. Commit to giving just £5 each month and you will ensure that the Word of God is shared across the world. Sign up here.

BIBLE SOCIETY NI 27 Howard Street, Belfast, BT1 6NB 028 9032 6577 Charity Reg. No. NIC102557 www.biblesocietyni.co.uk Header images show visually impaired children who have received Braille Bibles through this project.

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